He explained: “It’s certainly not a case that we’re getting wall to wall blue skies across the UK on Wednesday, Thursday, Friday or even Saturday. It is going to be pretty pleasant weather nevertheless, for at least the southern half of the UK.

“There are going to be bright spells, it is going to be dry, the winds are going to have backed off quite a lot and the temperature’s going to build.”

However, he cautioned that the improving conditions does not mean there will be “a switch to tropical weather by any means.”

The Met Office said that, given the unseasonable nature of the winds, the public should be aware of the potential for disruption to transport and outdoor activities.

One leading bookmaker suggested June “could be the hottest in British history.”

Coral has cut the odds on Britain having the hottest June since records began in 1910 to 3-1 from 5-1 amid predictions that a heatwave will sweep the nation.

The firm has given odds of 10-1 that the UK mainland temperature exceeds 37.8C while it is 12-1 that the UK record temperature high of 38.5C is broken.